WASHINGTON DC—Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley released the following statement after the announcement by Royal Dutch Shell that it would indefinitely suspend drilling in the Arctic. Shell’s statement comes after months of urging by Merkley, who in July introduced the Stop Arctic Ocean Drilling Act of 2015, a major piece of legislation to stop offshore Arctic drilling.

“This is tremendous news, and a credit to the many people who made clear that offshore Arctic drilling is unacceptable. Drilling in the Arctic Ocean is the height of irresponsibility. The Arctic sea is a unique, dangerous and incredibly fragile environment, and offshore Arctic drilling is simply not worth the risk. Building on today’s news, the U.S. should seize this moment to use its chairmanship of the Arctic Council to develop an agreement among all Arctic nations to end offshore drilling in the Arctic.”